Katerina has a unique style in photography and she is a winner of many international photographic competitions. I was very lucky to have a chance to interview her, and she also turned out to be a very nice person.
It is my pleasure to present you Katerina Lomonosov!
Click on the photo to enlarge.
First of all please tell us a little about yourself. When did you start getting interested in photography? Which stages of your development as photographer were the most important?
I was born in 1975, in Ukraine. As a child I liked drawing and graphics. In 1997 I moved to permanent residence in Israel, where I live now. From the year 2000 I am working as graphic-designer in an advertisement company.
I got interested in photography back in 2005. It so happened that at that time, a certain kind of emptiness appeared in my life. I wanted to fill that emptiness with something interesting, beautiful, bright… That “something” turned out to be photography…
I grow and evolve with my every new work, I’m a painter, I live, think and feel with my creations… Creative photography has become a crucial part of my life… I take part in various projects in the field of documentary and art photography, and I plan to grow and develop further in this area.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Where are you drawing inspiration and ideas for your works?
Inspiration and ideas for my works come in different ways… Sometimes idea just pops up from the subconsciousness, and some things come from pictures of other authors on the Internet. Some of my works are inspired by paintings of famous artists. There are also ideas on a particular subject, which are literally “nursed” in my head for a long time before they find their way out to be captured in a photograph.
Who are your models? Are they your relatives, acquaintances, or maybe professional photo models? How do you choose them?
My first models were my children – my son, who was then five years old, and a daughter, she was thirteen back then. Later, some of my friends and acquaintances were added to my arsenal, and also friends of my daughter. Nowadays many professional photo models would be honored to participate in my photographic work.
The most important thing for me when I choose a model is not the professionalism of the model but his/her natural body language and an expressive face, especially the eyes.
For me it is important to show in my photographs not only the beauty of lines, and location of light-spots, but also something from the depths of human nature, you may call it the “soul”. In my work I always strive to give depth of meaning to my photographs, so that they would make people think and try to understand what I wanted to express. I want my photographs to reach for the person’s deepest feelings and emotions.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
How do you find and choose locations?
Most of my photographs are a created at my house’s living room. I just move the furniture aside and make a small “studio”, but it is more like a simple corner. Occasionally I get out with my friends to take pictures outside. When shooting outside I prefer abandoned houses, but with walls and windows still intact , so even outside I seek places that look like my familiar environment at home.
How much time in your weekly routine is given to photography?
In good times, every Friday is all about photography. One day a week. Sometimes I also shoot on Saturdays. But I also have busy periods, when I have to sacrifice my hobby for other matters, and several weeks can pass without me creating a single photograph.
Let’s talk about the following photograph:
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Looking at it I feel vague associations with some of my childhood fears. What did you want to communicate through this photograph?
This photograph is named “Philosophy of Unfreedom”. At first this photograph is simply gives an impression of prisoned child staring outside from the “cage”. But I put also a hidden meaning here. Pay attention to the child’s hands. Look how hard he clings to his “cage”. How often we, being unfree in the literal or figurative meaning of this word, are afraid to loose our “cage”, fear to make changes in our lives, and feel comfortable in our unfreedom, though not always admit it?
Such interpretation doesn’t lie on the surface, and if a viewer won’t take time to “decipher” it, it will remain hidden. But even without it the photograph turned out to be deep, memorable, and strong – mostly thanks to a good acting of my five years old son ☺.
Photo “October…” I liked the most. It breathes with tenderness and freshness of the autumn… Tell us a bit about the creation of this photograph.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
This work is one of my favorites. The model is a young woman who came to me. She wanted me to create beautiful photographs of her. So she wanted to look good in the pictures, and my goal was not to disappoint her…
The idea of hair-tree came immediately to my mind, but post-processing took several hours. Then I was ready to send the work to my customer, but something stopped me…
I was returning to work on it each day of that week – tried to add various elements, but nothing worked. Until one day I had the idea to add falling leafs to the tree… Then everything fell into place, and the photograph got its final look.
Tell us about the accessories that you use in your work.
Each composition gets its own accessories. Sometimes it’s gloves or a fan, often different types of fabric, sometimes flowers. I also like to use fruits and vegetables – they seem “real” to me, just as the nature created them, I think this is important for my work. Once I even brought a stepladder from work – it complemented the background of the composition, and I made some very nice pictures with it.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
What equipment do you use? How important is quality equipment for photographer?
I started with a small point-and-shoot Fuji A210. Many of my early works, which are made with it, now participate in international exhibitions and competitions. Later, I bought Canon 350D and used it for three years. My best works are made using this camera.
Now I have Canon 5D Mk.II. I gladly switched to full frame, but still think that the photographer’s eyes and mind create the photograph and not the camera.
My opinion is that in most cases it is not essential which camera captured the picture – most important is when photograph reaches deep inside and touches your feelings.
Tell us a little about your work with light. What lighting techniques and equipment do you use?
Lighting? I use natural light that reaches my living room through the windows. Nothing more. I don’t use flashes, umbrellas, or reflectors. The important thing for me is to have free time during the daylight hours.
How much time you devote to Photoshop? What features of Photoshop you use the most?
Post-processing in Photoshop is crucial to me. I devote quite a lot of time to it. I work on each photograph for several hours. I use color-correction, add various textures, and work a lot with masks and layers.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Is it possible to buy your work, and if so, where?
I sell my work in galleries on the internet, some of them are presented in the Moscow gallery “Fotoloft”
You can also purchase my work directly from me.
If you could give only one piece of advice to a beginner photographer, what would it be?
I would advise to photograph with your “soul”. To put a maximum of “yourself” in what you do, and the result will not be long in coming.
Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Thank you Katerina for your time and knowledge! It has been a true pleasure talking with you.
If you liked Katerina’s works, you can visit her Gallery.
You can also contact Katerina regarding purchasing her work through her email: lomonosov.katerina at gmail.com